ah, vacation...

I'm just back from a few days vacation with my better half - we spent 5 awesome fun-filled days in New York City.

I love New York.  I know it's a cliche, but I really do.

There is just so much to see and do, and if doing the touristy thing isn't your game, then there's lots to just enjoy.  I had already been and visited Rockefeller Centre, The Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island and the like.  This trip, we decided to skip the typical tourist sites and just enjoy the city. We missed Central Park altogether thanks to mother nature and particularly nasty thunderstorm, but it'll be there next time we go, so I'm not too fussed.

Walking was the name of the game and other than a couple of cab rides back to the hotel after long days, we walked everywhere.  We spent most of our time in Midtown, shopping on 5th Avenue, taking in Grand Central Station and its beautiful architecture, and just generally anything that caught our eye, including little bistros to stop in for a snack. Another full day walking the High Line and then the neighborhoods around Greenwich Village and Soho was filled with beautiful brownstones, some wonderful tapas at Boqueria and some unexpected Christmas gift opportunities (I'm the one who you'll see running around the week before Christmas doing my shopping!) and to finish off our day - the most amazing pizza I have ever had in my life at Lombardi's.

I would be remiss if I didn't mention 2 of my favorite restaurants - Bobby Flay's Bar Americain and a new discovery Rue 57.   I'm slowly amassing a list of "favorite" restaurants that I've decided just means I need to stay in NYC longer :-)

Next week it's back to work and back to reality, but not without some superb memories of NYC in the summer!

It was a great reminder that vacations are made for memories, so don't forget to take yours and make some of your own memories!